I first visited Rome in 2013 for a whirlwind two days. One of which was spent on a day trip to Pompeii, which I highly recommend if you have the time and like me you’re into ancient history. During the other my friend and I attempted to see most of Rome’s major sites in a single day. James, if your reading this, I’m still not sure how we visited the Vatican including the Sistine Chapel and Raphael’s Rooms, the Pantheon, Spanish Steps, Trevi Fountain, the Coloseum and the Roman Forum in one day! I do remember how sore my feet were during the days following!

This trip I decided to spend a week in the capital and see some lesser known spots, with time to explore at a more relaxed pace.

I arrived on a Sunday afternoon after a pleasant train ride from Lucca via Pisa. My accommodation was a basement apartment not far the Trastevere train station. Daytime maximums were in the mid to low thirties but the humidity had ramped up to over 70%! Needless to say the dehumidifier and pedestal fan in my place were working overtime, as was the shower and washing machine!

I love walking around Rome. Everywhere you turn there are ruins of some kind. A patchwork of ancient city walls, remants of temples, monuments and aquaducts in amongst the busy city roads and apartment blocks.

If I didnt feel like walking, the Number 8 tram or a number of buses took me through Trastevere and over the Tiber River into the city centre. Via del Corso between Piazza Venezia and Piazza di Popolo was always heaving with tourists, however, outside the city centre it was considerably quieter. The exodus of Romans escaping the heat to enjoy their August holidays by the beach was noticable.

First up I booked a guided tour of the Borghese Gallery and Gardens. It was once the Borghese family’s villa on the edge of Rome. The Italian government acquired the entire estate in 1902 and converted the gardens into a public park and the villa into the present day gallery.

Cardinal Scipione Borghese was an avid art collector and built up the collection in the 1600’s. This included works by Caravaggio, Raphael and Titian. He was also an early patron of sculptor Gianlorenzo Bernini. Early patronage clearly has its advantages; the Borghese is the only gallery to have six Caravaggios in a single room and its collection of Bernini sculptures is unmatched.

Bernini’s skill and precision, capturing movement in stone, and his ability to delicately carve perfect hands and fingers from the marble is breathtaking. My favourite was Apollo and Daphne, which depicts her transformation into a tree at the hands of her father in order to escape Apollo. Her fingertips becoming leaves and her toenails turning into roots is incredible!

It was also a pleasure to share the tour with two couples from Kentucky. We took a selfie stick assisted photo at the end of the tour while overlooking the activity in Piazza del Popolo.

I also decided to escape the city for a day during stay too, after all when in Rome… I found a day tour to a winery in Frascati, which included a walking tour of the town and lunch at a ninth generation vineyard. A twenty minute train ride from Termini and you are in a beautiful castle town overlooking Rome.

I was joined by Peter and Carolyn from Canada and our guide Nico took us first through the town to a small wood fire bakery run by a 93 year old signora, then to a traditional tavern to try some strong home-made wine, and finally to the farmhouse. The family patriach took us through the vineyards and cellar while explaining the wine making process. We finished with a beautiful lunch of fresh fruit, cheese, cold meats, vegetables, bruschetta and pasta paired with the family’s wines.

An isolated electrical storm delayed our train back to Rome so Peter, Carolyn and I walked back into town and enjoyed some traditional porchetta with cold beers along with much conversation.

This day is easily in the top ten days of my trip. Beautiful weather, amazing scenery, delicious food along with great company – what more could you ask for? In fact, we enjoyed each others company so much we caught up again the following night for dinner!

Keeping up my walking tour habit, I booked one of Trastevere and Rome’s old Jewish ghetto. The story of the Jewish people in Rome over its long history is a saga of both good and bad times, depending on the ruler/s of the day.

The Trastevere area of Rome is now a popular and trendy place to live and dine due to its many hip eateries. Not so long ago it was very blue collar and our guide recounted elderly women telling her that when they were young they were ashamed to tell their suitors they lived there!

My final full day in Rome was spent visiting the iconic Capitoline Hill, with its impressive views over the Roman Forum to the Coloseum, and also a stop at the Pantheon. I had to marvel at its domed ceiling one more time!

My final stop was at my nan’s namesake church; Saint Cecilia in Trastevere. The present day church is built over the martyred Saint’s third century house. For a small fee you can desend under the church and see the excavated house and the highly decorated crypt.

My stay in Rome was most enjoyable and I left satisfied with how I’d spent my week. However, there was one heat induced thought I could not escape the entire time; swimming in cool sea water. Lucky my next destination was a very special seaside town… 😍